Windermere Cup

"G`day, mates, my name is Toby Dankbaar and I am from the best part of Austrailia: Sydney!"

The crowd on the Conibear apron and hanging over the balcony caught its breath but the Melbourne rowers burst out laughing, and then everyone else did too. That was the sort of day it was - light, fun, friendly, seriously competitive, and memorable - but it took an experienced senior two man to underscore the nature of what the Windermere Cup has become. Wndermere Real Estate's sponsorship and the Seattle Yacht Club's participation have turned this annual event into one of the sporting world's premier events, but one where good cheer and experience ranks up there with victory.

This year the Huskies hosted the Polish Men's Under 23 National team, the Melbourne University Women's team, and the U.S. Naval Academy's Men's and Women's teams. And this 22nd edition of the world-famous regatta turned into a Husky showcase from start to finish.

The men's varsity covered the course in 5:49.31, a full seven seconds ahead of second place Poland and eleven seconds ahead of the Naval Academy. It started, however, a litte shakily. On the way to the starting line, Blaise Didier's oarlock pin broke and the crew returned to the dock for a new boat. Having selected a Pocock the first time out to match the equipment being rowed by the visitors, they selected the Empacher "Chuck Holtz" as a replacement and raced to the starting line.

After the race we asked Coach Michael Callahan how many races in a row the Huskies had now won and he said: "I'm not counting. I don't want to know the number." We have no problem with superstition; it's probably enough to say that the Holtz remains undefeated in intercollegiate competition.

It should be mentioned, too, that the men wore racing shirts with a pink W in honor of Kim Allison, wife of Ryan Allison, a National Team teammate of Coach Callahan. Kim is a breast cancer specialist at the University of Washington Medical Center and she was recently diagnosed with breast cancer herself. The pink W's were a fitting reminder that we all need to be involved in the fight against breast cancer.

The women's varsity drove into the Cut and warmed the heart of every Husky fan. After winning at the San Diego Crew Classic, the team suffered several losses. Their victory in the Windermere Cup against the Naval Academy and the University of Melbourne showed, perhaps, that they have found the elusive formula. Watch the Pac 10 races closely; the Husky women are outstanding athletes who have a great chance of coming together at the right place and right time. Coach Bob Ernst said: "It's up to them. They hold the key."

In the Erickson Memorial Cascade Cup races for men and women, the men beat Oregon State and the Women's second varsity beat the Husky novice crew.

The four boat men's freshman race saw the Husky first freshmen boat prevail, followed by the second freshmen, Oregon State and the third freshmen.

Four Husky boats competed in the women's open 8. The order of finish was the 4th varsity, the 5th novice, the 2nd novice and the 3rd novice. The 3rd varsity won the men's open 8.

Finally, the men's and women's varsity 4's both won.

This Windermere Cup regatta has become an institution in the Northwest and in the rowing world. Remember that, Husky fans, when you think real estate.

Men's Varsity
Photo: Matt Lacey

Women's Junior Varsity
Photo: Matt Lacey

Navy, Huskies and Poland
Photo: Jason Scott

Women's Varsity
Photo: Matt Lacey
 

For more images, please click here

Cal Dual

Under a typical California sun and in perfect rowing conditions, our top-ranked men's varsity defeated California in their annual dual regatta. The women's varsity lost to the Bears, their third consecutive defeat after putting the rowing world on notice when they won the opening event of the year, the San Diego Crew Classic.

The men's junior varsity lost to the Bears but the men's freshman squad looked strong in taking their race. The roles were reversed for the women; the second varsity won but the novice squad lost. The women's varsity four won.

The men's varsity got off to a great start and led down the entire course. You can watch the race on www.huskycrew.com where you will be impressed by the strength, speed, stamina and skill of this year's team. They simply dominated, building their advantage through the entire 2000 meters and crossing the line with an open water win. The Chuck Holtz, remains undefeated

After their win at the San Diego Crew Classic and their more recent losses, the women used their practice time to regroup, recommit and find the speed they lost. The Windermere Cup race (see above) gives us reason for encouragement but the real test will come May 18th at the Pac 10 Championships. It is time to avenge those losses to Oregon State, Washington State and number one rated California.

Men's Varsity
Photo: Brian Jackson

Men's Freshmen
Photo: Brian Jackson

Women's Junior Varsity
Photo: Brian Jackson

For more images, click here

Dave McLean “Dawg Saturday” Memorial

Okay, you've read about it for several months, now it is time to act.

We told you it was going to be a sellout and it will be. There are only 144 slots in this relaxed, fun-centered, best ball tournament and nearly half have been sold so you need to act now quickly. Yes, you can attend the dinner and auction without playing and at a much reduced price but why miss the fun?

The date is August 15. Call your friends and put together a foursome, or simply register and we'll slot you with great playing companions

The dinner and auction will be great fun. Among the items gathered by the auction committee are rounds of golf on very special courses, overnight accommodations, Mariners and Seahawks tickets and signed memorabilia, fishing trips, fine wine, Husky gear and much more. Remember, in addition to great fun, every dollar over expenses will be donated to the rowing program.

Click here to sign-up!

Husky Brains

Work first, play later.

No one is confused about the principal reason our athletes attend the University of Washington. They are preparing at one of the world's great universities for their futures. And that preparation, like the races they row, can be measured and judged. Our coaches do and we hope you do as well.

Husky rowing has a long tradition of academic excellence. As Michael Callahan said recently to Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times: "Very good rowers are very intelligent. It takes a lot of mental focus."

Proof? Go to the Seattle Times website and check out sports columnist Kelley's May 1 article on varsity bow man Lowell Neal's scientific experiments on energy, oars and Cap'n Crunch. Aside from a great story, it offers on-point confirmation to Callahan's comment.

And in the event you are thinking: "Yeah, but that's just one guy;" stay with us here. Nine varsity rowers on the women's team made the Dean's list and one of them, Rachel Powers, who strokes the undefeated varsity four and will be next year's Commodore, won a prize for having the highest GPA in the Athletic Department. The other eight on the list included Jennifer Dwyer, Caitlin Henry, Blakeley Holland, Alysha Koorji, Line Larsen, Elisabeth Page, Lia Prins, and Hanelore-Adele Trafnik.

Eleven varsity men made the Dean's list last quarter. These scholar-athletes are Heath Allen, Richard Bargreen, Christopher Culbert, Drew Fowler, Alex Keats, Matt Mackinnon, Lowell Neal, James North, Katelin Snyder, Simon Taylor and Aston Tennefoss. Sharp eyes reviewing the varsity names will note that three of the eleven are currently in the Varsity 8. And to underscore the point that our expectations extend to every class, every year, the scholar-athletes above welcomed four freshmen to the Dean's list ranks. They are John Collins, Welles Mattson, Bjoern Sbierski, and Henry Riely.

The team grade point average for both the men and women was 3.11

Work first, play later could be a motto for the student-athletes at Conibear. We can't think of better preparation for life than the challenges of Washington's classrooms combined with the challenges of Husky Crew.

Husky Brawn

Rob Gibson, our 2007 Men's Captain, made the Canadian 4- Olympic boat in April together with former Husky Pete Dembicki. They still need to qualify the boat for the Olympic competition and will do so at the Olympic Qualification Regatta in Poland in mid-June.

Rob was quoted by his hometown newspaper, The Kingston Whig-Standard on his reaction to the news. "When the nominations were announced, it was like this big weight was lifted off me. The wait was very stressful ...; but worth it." Max Lang, who took the school year off to compete for a spot on the Canadian team, is still on the cusp.

Husky, Bryan Volpenhein, rowing for the US Training Center is a step closer to making the US Olympic Team. Rowing at the National Selection Regatta #2 in late April, he and pair partner Jason Read won going away. Brian was quoted by US Rowing: "It was our best race of the weekend, and it's always nice to end on a good note. I'm looking forward to racing this summer at a world cup. It's just another step along the way to Beijing."

Racing for the U.S. Rowing Training Center, Megan Kalmoe '06, teamed with Ellen Tomek to win the final of the women's double sculls. Look for her on the women's team.

At the same regatta, Scott Gault '05, who has been training out of the California Rowing Club, partnered with Andrew Livermore in a California Rowing Club/Penn A.C. double scull and came in a close second. The finish landed them both back at the National Team in Princeton with a good shot at sculling spots on the U.S. Olympic team. By telephone, Scott said: "Give credit to our coach, Tim McLaren. I can't say enough about his skills. He's been phenomenal."

As we mentioned last month, there are more Huskies in Olympic training camps around the world than there are from any other school. Few Olympic seats have been finalized so far. In the U.S., at least, qualification has become a mind-numbingly complicated process but we're told it makes sense. So stay tuned. When it actually does make sense to the casual fan, we will update you here and on our companion website www.huskycrew.com.

2007 – 2008 Crew Calendar

The 2007-2008 year is scheduled and it's going to be busy. Mark your calendar today for the racing and related event days. Alumni events are highlighted in bold type.

For more information about Husky racing schedule,
click here
 

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